As I have mentioned before, in the midst of all of tripwire's
vehemance and angst, any peace-loving Muslim would agree with him
in condemning the acts of these terrorists.
The terrorists' mission is simple and vicious. They not only abuse
religion to fulfill their own ends, they also pull all Muslims into
the trap. What trap? You might ask.
Well, in using religion, the terrorists have wittingly caused a
divide to open between the Muslims and the non-Muslims. Who are
their victims? Why, Muslims and non-Mulims alike. You see, any
society which is not well-integrated, whose racial mix lives in
deep distrust with each other, will experience this dreadful
schism. Non-Muslims will begin to persecute and blame the Muslims
for the acts of a minority, and the Muslims will have no choice but
to defend themselves. I am not envisioning a war, though, God
forbid! My point is, the trap that these terrorists lay is not only
a physical one, but also a psychological one.
People who refuse to see that it is the Muslims who have failed
Islam, rather than Islam failing Muslims have no choice but to
promote a campaign of intolerance that is faintly akin to the
Christian militant views of the Ku Klux Klan. Why were the Asians,
Blacks, Hispanics and Jews murdered by the "white supremecists"?
Simple reason, Jesus was a "white" man (how fallacious this belief
is!).
It is important to understand that all religions preach tolerance
and goodness. The Quran continually exhorts its followers to pursue
peace until the end of days, how can this be taken as a religion of
violence and terror? It is Osama's personal vendatta against
"western civilisation" that has got Muslims all over the world so
deeply troubled, and non-Muslims so hostile against the Muslims. In
a way, the trap had been sprung. I only hope that the strong
cohesion of the Singaporean way of life will be able to withstand
these onslaughts.
As a Muslim, I categorically condemn the attacks that were laid out
by that villian Osama. It is amusing to see people being indignant
about this. I mean, they would think that hey, since I'm a Muslim,
I should stick together with the terrorists and be one with them in
heart, spirit and cause. Well, using this type of crooked logic, it
would make perfect sense to also say that since I'm a Chinese, I'm
also a fervent Communist. But that's not so. In this world, there
are Chinese who believe in Communism, and Chinese who don't. I
don't take the whole of China as a whole reflection of the
race.
In the same vein, it is interesting to note that almost all of the
Muslims who use the word 'jihad' are people who live in third-world
countries, or in a nation stricken by war, poverty, corruption and
a repressive government. Like the Chinese students who rose up in
rebellion against the Communist regime in Tianamen Square, Muslim
leaders have consistently used religion to unite the people in
their cause. In effect, it is a rebellion very much like any
rebellion, except that Muslim leaders abuse the name of
Islam.
I would have to agree wholeheartedly with tripwire on that.
In Singapore, it is important to maintain a culture that transcends
all faiths, all races. Hehe, doesn't mean that if I'm a Muslim, I'm
a 'bumiputra' lover and a 'dog-hater'. My good sense recognises the
mistakes of a system that is not based on meritocracy, and exults
everytime Singapore excels in something, some branch of science or
some niche in business. In Singapore, there is no need for a Muslim
way, or a Christian way, or a Hindu way. The Singaporean way is
enough, because it is the way of tolerance and patience. That is
why I'm confident that no Muslim in Singapore would ever be
"tricked" into the schemes of mad mullahs and crazy Osamas...
It only takes a little bit of brainpower to realise that as a
human, I recognise the evil behind Osama's deeds. Take away my
faith, and I will still see Osama as evil. I don't have to be a
Muslim or a Hindu or a Christian to understand what evil
means.
------------------
For a rollicking good time, come visit my homepage at: http://clik.to/pebble
[This message has been edited by salivateforme (edited 24 September
2001).]
